


After The Storm

by AbandonShip



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Angst, Beacon Heights, Blizzards & Snowstorms, Claudia Stilinski Feels, Creepy, Cuddling & Snuggling, Deaths, Derek Loves Stiles, Derek Saves Stiles, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fear, Fireplaces, Food, Funny Misunderstandings, Gen, Graphic Description, Hale Family Feels, Horror, Hurt/Comfort, Hypothermia, It Isn't Canon Yet Though, Language, M/M, Manipulation, Monsters, Mountains, Music, Mystery, Pack Dad Derek Hale, Pack Family, Pack Feels, Pack Mother Stiles Stilinski, Panic Attacks, Paralysis, Protective!Derek, Puppy Piles, Road Trips, Sad, Scary, Sexual Tension, Sharing Body Heat, Singing, Ski Resorts, Sledding, Snow, Snow and Ice, Snowball Fight, Spiders, Stiles Loves Derek, Tests, The monster stalks and studies its victims, Violence, Weird But Interesting Plot, Winter Cottage, disguises, disturbing descriptions, kidnappings, messed up, murders, sterek
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-07
Updated: 2014-02-10
Packaged: 2018-01-07 19:11:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1123359
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AbandonShip/pseuds/AbandonShip
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The one where Derek takes the pack up to his old winter cottage for vacation, in a town called Beacon Heights:</p><p> <br/>“Derek! I’m sorry.” Stiles shouts. He looks over his shoulder to see the wolf catching up to him. “I shouldn’t have done that – that was bad! Holy shit! Please don’t kill me!”</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Road

Stiles sits up front with Derek.

“Are we there yet?” He whines.

“No.” Derek growls for the millionth time. He tries to focus on the road.

“How much longer is it going to be?” Scott asks from the backseat. He sits in between Allison and Isaac.

“I don’t know,” Derek sighs. “Like another two hours?”

“Have you ever been to this place before?” Isaac asks.

“Yeah,” Derek replies. “Cora and I used to come up here all the time with our family.”

The wolf glances in his rearview mirror to check on Cora. She drives in a separate car behind his, following them. Lydia sits up front with her. Danny, Ethan and Aiden sit in the back.

Derek returns his gaze onto the road again.

“How about some tunes?” Stiles says. He flips on a random radio station, blasting the music as loud as it can possibly go. Scott and he start dancing around in their seats obnoxiously together to _I’m Sexy and I Know It_ by LMFAO.

Derek mutters something about the song being stupid, and immediately turns the volume down.

“I’d rather listen to your iPod,” Derek glances over at Stiles. “Instead of this stupid shit”

“Aw, does Der-bear like my taste in music?” Stiles teases.

“Stop calling me that.” Derek warns.

Stiles sets up his iPod, and hits shuffle on one of his playlists. _White Blank Page_ by Mumford and Sons plays, then _Wake Me Up When September Ends_ by Green Day, _Sea of Love_ covered by Cat Power, _Never Let Me Go_ by Florence and The Machine, and then _Skinny Love_ by Bon Iver.

Derek can hear Stiles singing along quietly to himself as he drives. He’s surprised to find that his soothing voice puts his wolf and human at ease. He always puts the two at balance and at bay when he talks or sings. Derek wishes he’d sing louder so he could hear him better.

An old song that sounds nothing like the others starts to play. Everyone in the car recognizes it immediately. _Total Eclipse of The Heart_ by Bonnie Tyler.

Derek’s wish comes true.

_"Turn around"_ Stiles sings along, dramatically. He leans over to put his hand over Derek’s heart. Scott is the only one dying of laughter in the backseat. _"Every now and then I get a little bit lonely and you’re never coming ‘round"_

“Knock it off, Stiles,” Derek pries his hand off and gently pushes him away. “I’m driving.”

 Stiles doesn't listen to him. He keeps on singing, never missing a word.

_“EVERY NOW AND THEN I FALL APART”_ He belts out. Stiles bends towards him again to seize hold of his shirt. _“AND I NEED YOU NOW TONIGHT, AND I NEED YOU MORE THAN EVER, AND IF YOU’LL ONLY HOLD ME TIGHT, WE’LL BE HOLDING ON FOREVER.”_   

“Stop” Derek pleads. He groans in frustration when Stiles doesn’t take his hands off of him.

_“AND WE’LL ONLY BE MAKING IT RIGHT, ‘CAUSE WE’LL NEVER BE WRONG”_ Stiles tightens his grip on his shirt, and practically crawls into his lap. 

Derek lets out a deep sigh of annoyance.

Slowly but surely, the song comes to an end.

_“There’s nothing I can say, a total eclipse of the heart”_ Stiles tones his voice down to match the singer. _“A total eclipse of the heart”_ He releases Derek from his grasp and slowly fades away, back into his seat. _“A total eclipse of the heart”_

Derek thanks God the song is finally over. At least he got to hear Stiles sing louder than earlier.

“I thought we were staying at a hotel.” Allison says.

“Nope” He tells her, and puts the car into park. Peter, Laura, Cora and he haven’t been back to their cottage since the Hale fire. 

Cora pulls up in the driveway and parks her car right behind Derek’s. The pack gets out of their vehicles to reunite.

Stiles experimentally shuffles his feet in the snow. He’s got a funny look on his face.  
“What?” Derek asks.

“It’s just…I’ve never seen snow before.” Stiles tells him.

It never snows in Beacon Hills. 

“You haven’t?” Scott says, surprised.

“I’ve never been skiing before either.” Stiles states. 

Danny and Ethan stand in front of the house, holding hands. Lydia and Aiden mimic them as they view the cottage together.

“Start unloading stuff from the trunk-” Derek heads over to the back of the vehicle, only to get hit in the back of the head by a snowball. The freezing snow slides down the back of his neck, right into the collar of his black winter jacket.

Derek glances in the direction the snowball was thrown. Stiles and Scott point straight at one another, blaming each other. Derek knows who did it. He glares at him. He gives his you’re-really-going-to-get-it-now face.

“Oh shit.” Stiles mutters. As the werewolf starts charging, he breaks out into a run.

The pack worries for Stiles’ survival as they watch Derek chase him into the woods.

“Derek! I’m sorry.” Stiles shouts. He looks over his shoulder to see the wolf catching up to him. “I shouldn’t have done that – that was bad! Holy shit! Please don’t kill me!”

The boy has a hard time picking up his feet as he races down the snow-covered mountainside.  Derek isn’t stopping to forgive him. By now, the wolf is at least two feet away from the boy, reaching out to grab hold of his red winter coat. Stiles manages to shrug his hand off his shoulder but he fails to pick up a faster pace. Without thinking, Derek dives forward and tackles Stiles down into the snow. Derek grunts and Stiles screams as their bodies roll and tumble all the way down the steep hill together.

It seems like forever before they lose speed and come to a stop. When they do, Derek ends up on top of Stiles. The werewolf looks down to find the boy, his nose and cheeks turning pink from the cold.  They stare at each other for a long moment. Stiles takes a fistful of fluffy snow and clouts him on the side of his head with it. The teenager breaks out in laughter. The older man gets revenge by shoving a huge portion of snow down the front of his jacket.

“Ahhhhhhhhhh!” Stiles cries. The icy substance makes direct contact with his skin as it slithers down into his sweater. He gently shoves Derek off of him and stumbles to get up off of the ground.  “Ah! Cold! Cold! Cold! Cold!” Stiles strips off his winter jacket and pushes the freezing snow out of his sweater. “You bitch!” 

Stiles has never seen the bastard laugh so hard.


	2. Sirens

The pack engage in a snowball fight in front of the cottage. 

Allison has the best aim for throwing snowballs, never missing anybody. Lydia sneaks up on people from behind and shoves a huge portion of snow down their ski jackets. Danny and Ethan build a tall snow barrier to duck and cover from from incoming hits. 

“We should split up in teams!” Aiden suggests.

The pack stops the battle to meet up with each other and break up into groups. It’s decided that alphas get to be the leaders of the team. Scott is the captain of the Team A and the twins are the co-captains of the Team B. The two teams fight over who gets to have Allison (because she kicks ass). They duel in rock-paper-scissors. Scott’s team manages to win her to their side. Scott chooses Stiles to be in his group. He wants everyone on his team but it has to split it fairly, so he takes Isaac. Lydia, Cora and Danny are chosen by the twins. 

It takes at least fifteen minutes for the two sides to prepare. Team B adds onto the barricade Ethan and Danny had been building together before. Team A steals their idea and builds their own fortress. It turns out to be less thick and sturdy than the other team’s blockade.

“Ready! Set! Go!” Scott shouts. 

Allison is like a machine gun of snowballs. Every time she throws a snowball, she nails somebody in the face. Scott charges halfway onto the other team’s territory, chucking snow at the nearest person. Isaac tries not to throw too hard, afraid he might accidently hurt someone. Lydia uses the technique she was using before - sneaking up on people, and then shoving snow into the back of their ski jacket collars. 

Stiles dodges the snowball Aiden tosses at him. It barely misses his head.  

Derek sits out on the side, watching them. “This is stupid.” He mutters under his breath.

            After a long hour of snowball fighting, the pack starts getting cold. Everyone starts complaining that they can’t feel their nose, fingers or toes. Derek’s about to call it a day when suddenly they hear police sirens roar down the road.

            “That’s a hell lot of police cars.” Aiden states. 

“What do you think’s going on?” Allison asks.

“No clue.” Scott says.

“They’re heading towards the ski resort.” Derek tells them. He watches the direction they’re heading in.

“Hope nobody got hurt…” Isaac frowns. 

            The pack watches red and blue flashing car lights pass down the cottage.

            “We should start unpacking,” Derek eventually says. “Everybody grab something from the trunk.” The pack unloads the food, drinks, gear and luggage from the trunks of the two cars, and bring it inside the cottage. 

            After the pack has finished, they lay out in the living room of the cottage in front of the fire place. They hold their own mug of Hot Cocoa, sipping it as time goes by. Five of them have managed to squeeze onto the couch together. Cora sits on the arm of the couch. Scott’s head in Allison’s lap, his legs stretched across Derek and Isaac’s thighs. Ethan and Danny are seated on the floor in front of the couch, cuddling with their backs pressing up against Scott and Allison’s legs. Aiden is sitting in the large recliner to the left side of them. Lydia is snuggled up on his lap. Stiles sits close up to the fireplace, using the fire poker to play with the fire.

            “Stiles,” Derek hasn’t taken his eyes off of Stiles this whole time.

            “Yeah” Stiles says. He glances over his shoulder for an abrupt moment and then looks back at the toasty fire. 

            “Stop playing with the fire.” Derek demands. “Knowing you, you’re going to burn yourself.” Stiles is sitting so close to the fire that it’s making him nervous.

            “You’re such a party pooper.” Stiles sighs. He pokes the flames one last time, and then hangs the iron stick back on the stand. 

            “I try.” Derek tells him. “My main goal in life is to destroy all the fun our pack has.”

            “Wait…did you just make a joke?” Stiles whirls around to face the pack. “I don’t even know what the hell that was! But I think it’s a sign of definite progress.” Stiles stares at him blankly for a moment. Then he remembers that he left something back in Derek’s car. “Aw, fuck. I left my _Gameboy_ in your car. I’ll be right back!”

            Before anyone can say anything, he throws on his winter jacket, slips on his boots, and goes out into the cold night.

 

            His boots leave visible tracks behind in the two inch deep snow. He picks up the pace as the cold hits his skin on his way over to Derek’s car. He’s heard of bad instances where people have left their _Nintendo DS_ in below freezing or extremely hot temperatures. It could affect playing it. Plus it’ll keep him from poking the fire and will give him something to do. He grabs the door handle to the passenger’s seat. It’s locked. Stiles feels stupid for not asking Derek for his car keys first.  

            He feels large fingers touch his shoulder. He jumps and screams a very manly scream thank you very much, and spins around. It’s Derek. He holds out the car keys out to him.

            “Are you trying to give me a heart attack?” Stiles yells. He tries to calm his racing heartbeat and breathing. _Or is this just another excuse to touch me?_ Stiles jokes with his own feelings, inside his head. He knows Derek will never like him the way Stiles wants him to.

            “Did you really think I’d leave the car unlocked?” Derek hands him the keys.

            “No – Well I didn’t really think about it…” Stiles presses the button and unlocks the car.

“Well hurry up, it’s getting cold out,” The wolf turns around to go back inside. “And don’t forget to lock the car.”

“Yeah, yeah alright” The boy says. He bats a hand at him before opening the car door.

Derek’s gone back inside. Stiles gets a sudden strange feeling he’s being watched. He scans his surroundings, thinking maybe he’s still out here. Suddenly there’s another hand on his shoulder. He screams like he did the last time.

“DAMMIT DER-!” Stiles cuts off. He spins around to see it’s not Derek but a police officer, shining a flashlight in his eyes. There’s even a police car parked on the side of the road. “Oh sorry, officer…I thought you were someone else.”

“You shouldn’t be out here this late at night, kid.” The officer says. “Were you or were you not informed that there’s a kidnapper on the loose?”

“Informed? Uh not at all” Stiles shudders at the news. Scary shit seems to follow the pack everywhere.  “I was just getting something from my car.”

“It’s been all over the news, kid” He says. “Don’t forget to lock up the house tonight.”

“Yeah, sure, right” Stiles says. He can see his own breath in the cold air. He snatches his _Nintendo Gameboy DS_ case. “Goodnight sir”

“Goodnight, stay safe.” The officer watches him go back inside the cottage.

 

Derek adjusts the old radio for Stiles. It’s kept in the living room on top of the fireplace. The whole pack has gathered around to listen.

 _“Breaking News,”_ The anchorwoman says. “ _Lock your doors and windows, folks. A possible kidnapper is on the loose in Beacon Heights, California._ _Three people were reported missing yesterday,”_ Derek fixes his gaze on Stiles. _“They were last seen at or working at the Oakton ski resort._ ”

“Oh, shit.” Isaac says.

 “I’m going to go check the doors and windows,” Derek says. “I want everyone to sleep in here tonight.”  

The pack set up their pillows and blankets in the living room while Derek makes sure everything’s safe and secure.

 

The room is dark, the fireplace being the only light source in the room. Scott is in the recliner with Allison. They bundle up in blankets together. Lydia and Aiden get the entire couch to themselves because Lydia is perfect and always gets what she wants. Isaac shares his pillows and blankets with Cora. Danny and Ethan lie beside them, wrapped up in their own cocoon. All five of them are basically puppy piling it out on the floor and in front of the couch together.

With his back against the wall and his arms crossed tightly against his chest, Derek sits in the right corner of the living room. The fireplace illuminates half of his face, an orange-whitish color dancing across half of his face, and a small section of his collarbone and arm. The werewolf watches the human go around the living room quietly. He tucks the pups in; making sure everyone’s warm and comfortable for the night.  Once Stiles finished, he returns to the nest of pillows he’s made near the fireplace. He sees Derek grin a little.

“What?” Stiles whispers.

“Nothing,” Derek says. “You’re just really good with them.”  

Stiles lies on his stomach. He rests his chin on his folded arms like a cushion. “Ha, thanks” He gives him a crooked grin. “So do you think like bad shit follows us everywhere we go?”

“Probably” Derek tells him.

“I don’t know about you,” Stiles starts. “But I have a bad feeling about these kidnappings.”

“Try to get some sleep, Stiles” Derek isn’t in the mood to talk about it.

“Ugh, fine,” He groans. “Goodnight Derek.” He rolls over onto his side and snuggles up in his blankets.

“Goodnight, Stiles” Derek mutters under his breath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updated every Monday after Teen Wolf and Wolf Watch!


	3. Cold

Stiles sleeps in, longer than he usually does. He wakes up to the sound of voices, the cabinets creaking open and the clinging of utensils being taken out. He finds he’s the only one still sleeping. He gets up and heads to the kitchen.

The pack sits at the table talking to each other. Derek stands in front of the stove, whipping up the first batch of pancakes for them. From the side of his eye, he catches Stiles walk in. He glances over at him.

“Morning” The wolf says.

“Morning, Derek” Stiles says, not knowing that his pajamas are ruffled and his hair is a mess.

“Scott told me that you’re allergic to blueberries,” Derek states. “So I didn’t put any in.”

“Thanks” Stiles smiles.

There’s a pancake filled plate set out in the middle of the table. It’s an awfully large, wooden kitchen bench. The whole table set is a light sugary brown tone. The right angled table bench lines up perfectly in the corner with the wall and the kitchen counter. Stiles scoots in next to Scott, Allison, Isaac and Cora. Across from them is Lydia, who’s seated next to Aiden, while Ethan and Danny sit just around the left corner of the table from them. Stiles leaves an open space for Derek, hoping he’ll sit next to him when he’s finished cooking.

“I couldn’t sleep last night” Isaac tells them and takes a sip of his orange juice.

“Yeah, me neither” Allison says.  

“I slept pretty good for a kidnapper being on loose and all.” Stiles states.

He reaches across the table to stab his fork into the biggest pancake there is before setting it down on his very own plate. He grabs the butter and smears it all over the whole thing, then pours a huge amount of syrup on his pancake. He does the same with the other bottle of syrup they have, chocolate flavored, and then adds a ton of sugar on top of it. He takes the bottle of whip cream and draws a very happy smiley face on his pancake with it. The pack doesn’t seem to care. They’re pretty used to Stiles eating large amounts of sugary goodness at one time.

After Derek’s finished making enough to have a third serving, he goes over to join them. Stiles flinches a little in surprise when he feels Derek’s leg brush against his, not realizing he’s there.  While everybody is talking about the weird dreams they had last night, Stiles turns to Derek to start a conversation with him.

“We should check for updates on those kidnappings.” Stiles tells him.

“Not during breakfast,” Derek grunts. “You can wait till after.”

“Fine” Stiles sighs.

When breakfast ends, they clean up and put everything away. The pack goes to living room to flip on the radio.

 _“This just in,”_ The anchorwoman begins. _“If you know the whereabouts of any of these missing people, contact the police immediately: Sarah O’Connor, Riley McGuire and Jacob Wilson.”_

“Maybe we should check out the place they went missing.” Stiles suggests.

“Wouldn’t you rather have a supernatural, death free vacation?” Lydia says.

“No – I mean, yeah, death free sounds nice,” Stiles replies.

“We’ve been through a lot together,” Allison states. “We could use a good break.”

“Yeah,” The twins agree at the same time.

“Maybe it’s just a normal police case,” Isaac suggests.

“Yeah,” Danny agrees. “Maybe it doesn’t even involve the supernatural.”

“Let’s have the police handle it for once,” Scott says. “No research, no danger, and no death. Just pack.”  He throws an arm around Stiles’ shoulder.  

“Yeah, I guess.” Stiles sighs.

The pack manages to convince Derek to let them go outside. Could it really be that dangerous if they all stay together?

Cora, Aiden, Lydia, Ethan and Danny sit around a small bonfire. Isaac and Allison build a snowman together. Derek sits on the porch swing, reading a thick book.

Scott and Stiles make a giant snow fort, consisting of multiple tunnels. The two have been working on it for hours now. Stiles flattens the outside of the fortress while Scott works on the inside.

Every now and then, Stiles will glance over at Derek. He always looked so calm whenever he reads. The last time Stiles looks at him; Derek senses his eyes on him. He looks up from his book to make eye contact with him. Stiles flails nervously, and turns his head out to the woods, pretending he hadn’t been staring at him. Derek chuckles and goes back to reading.

Stiles freezes in place when he sees a familiar woman standing out near the tree line. She’s hairless with a tube running through her nose. She wears nothing but a hospital gown and is barefoot in the snow. She stares straight at him, a blank expression on her face.

“Mom…?” Stiles whispers softly, confused as hell. He watches Claudia simply turn around and walk out into the woods. “Mom!!!” He yells.

Stiles can hear his pack calling after him but it doesn’t stop him from chasing after her. He works his legs all way across the snowy field and into the woods. Stiles sprints at the same pace he’d run if a monster is chasing after the pack and he. He starts to sweat, and his throat becomes dry but he never stops to catch his breath.

By the time she comes to a sudden halt, minutes have passed. She stops on the center of a large frozen lake.

Stiles is just about to run out on the icy lake after her. He manages to counteract and stumble back before his feet make it out on the ice. He doesn’t know how thick it is, and doesn’t want to use himself as a test dummy to find out.

“Mom…” His breath is visible in the absence of heat.

Claudia slowly turns around to face him. He hasn’t seen that bright smile of hers since she had gotten sick. Those adorable dimples that made him feel content and at home, that always made him feel safe. She opens up her arms to him, welcoming him to come out and hug him. If his mother can walk out onto the ice, without falling through, then he probably won’t either. Why would she put him in danger? Stiles takes a careful step out onto the ice, testing its strength. One foot after another he tries to close the distance between them. He’s about halfway there when he hears a crackle under him. He looks down to see cracks shaping beneath his boots. He lets out a scream as he feels the ice collapse under his weight. He plunges into the freezing water.

The icy water burns his eyes as glances above to find the hole he fell through. He works his limbs to swim back up to the surface. The freezing water slows him down. An icy chill rushes through him when he meets the cool air. He treads his legs, trying to stay afloat, and keep his head up above the surface. There’s no sign of his mother nearby. Stiles tries to think up ideas of how the fuck he can get out of this mess. He swims over to the strongest looking edge of ice there is, right in the direction of the snowy grounds. He raises his shivering hands out of the water and tries to heave himself up over. His wet hands against the ice make it slippery for him to catch a good grip on. It makes him slide back into the freezing water.

By the time he hears his pack yell out his name, his body grows numb. He glances up to see eight approaching figures in the distance, running towards him.

“STILES!” Scott and Derek shout. They meet the edge of the frozen lake at the same time.

“Don’t worry, Stiles!” Scott gets down on all fours, about crawl out to him. “I’m coming to get you!”

Derek grabs hold of Scott’s hood and pulls him back. “No,” Derek tells him. “I’ll do it.”

“You’re older than us and have more body mass, Derek,” Lydia interjects. “The ice is more likely to break.”

“I don’t care,” Derek says. “I’d rather risk myself than the rest of you.”

“Please careful.” Allison knows there’s no way of stopping him.

“Wait, Derek, here” Danny hands him a large tree branch.

“Thank you.” He takes it from him.

The pack watches eagerly as Derek gets down on his stomach and army crawls out onto the ice.

“You’re going to be okay,” Derek reassures Stiles. He can hear his heartbeat getting slower. The werewolf extends the stick out for him to grab hold of.

Stiles violently shivers, he clearly lacks coordination as he reaches out for it.

“You can do this, Stiles.” Derek encourages. He isn’t going to let Stiles die.

“So c-c-cold” He hears Stiles mutter.

Stiles manages to wrap his hands around it. He tries to make an effort to get out of the water, so Derek won’t have to do all the work. Once Derek heaves him halfway out, he grabs hold of his arms and abandons the stick.

 “I’ve got you.” Derek reassures him some more as he pulls. Stiles’ legs finally make it out of the cold water. Derek holds him close and drags him back towards the land.

Their pack helps them stand up once they reach land. The werewolf wraps the human’s arm around the back of own neck and scoops him up into his arms. The werewolves can hear his heartbeat and breathing weakening by the minute. They race back to the cottage.

 Stiles’ eyes start to grow heavier.

“Stay awake, Stiles!” Scott pleads.

 Derek looks down at the boy in his arms, tightening his hold on him, terrified of losing him. Stiles struggles to keep his droopy eyes open.

“S-s-s-so c-c-cold” Stiles mumbles.

The cottage finally comes up into view.

“We’re almost there, Stiles” Derek tells him.

 

“Lydia and Allison go grab some blankets for him,” Derek orders. “Scott, help me get him out of these clothes. Everyone else stay out of the way!”

Scott follows Derek into the bedroom. He helps set his best friend down onto the bed, and remove his wet clothes.

Allison and Lydia return with blankets. They set them down on the bedside table. Even though they’re extremely concerned about him, they want to respect Stiles’ privacy. The girls shut the door behind them after they leave Derek’s bedroom. They use all the blankets they’ve grabbed and wrap Stiles up in them. He shivers to death under the covers, mumbling and slurring words that nobody can understand.

Derek begins to strips off his winter coat, and then pulls his long sleeved shirt over his head.

“What are you doing?” Scott asks.

“Body heat,” Derek says. “He needs body heat.” He removes the rest of his clothes.

Scott begins to pace back and forth about the room. Eventually he resides to sitting the corner, blankly staring into space, scared for his best friend.

Derek quickly crawls into bed and gets underneath all the blankets they’ve bundled him up in. The wolf wraps his arms around the boy, and draws him close. Their bodies press against each other’s, chest to chest, their legs intertwined. He can feel Stiles quiver into the sudden warmth. He buries his face into Derek’s shoulder, trying to benefit from all the heat he’s allowed to take.

All that’s left to do is wait.    

 

Stiles’ heart leaps at the sight of Derek. He wakes up still naked and cocooned in blankets with him. They lie on their sides facing each other, the same position Stiles dozed off in. He props himself up on his elbow to look around the bedroom. He’s surprised to find the entire pack piled up in bed with them. Derek senses his movement, and opens his eyes.

“They were just worried about you,” Derek whispers. “Go back to sleep.”

Stiles doesn’t respond. He just cuddles closer to Derek, and falls back asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updated every Monday after Teen Wolf and Wolf Watch.


	4. Snow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I uploaded this earlier tonight because my TV wasn't working. No Wolf Watch for me. At least I got to see the new episode. :)

The next day, Stiles explains to the pack what happened. How he saw his mom and went after her, and led him out onto a frozen lake, and how she disappeared when he came up for air.

“Your mom would never have put you in danger like that” Scott says.

“It must’ve been some kind of…shapeshifter or something,” Stiles assumes. “Whatever it was…it wasn’t my mom.”

“Why though?” Isaac asks. “Why would it want you dead?”

 Derek shudders at the thought.

“I don’t know,” Stiles tells him. “It must have something to do with the people that went missing recently.”

           

After the scary incident with Stiles, Derek keeps the pack inside the cottage. For days they begged him to let them go outside. Derek always refuses.

“Please, let us go outside, Derek,” Scott begs.

“We’re so bored!” Isaac whines.

“There’s nothing to do!” Ethan complains.

“Shut up,” Derek groans. “Go play those board games you brought on the trip with us.”

“We played all of them a million times!” Danny says.

“I can’t be isolated like this!” Lydia exclaims.

“Please?” Allison begs.

“We’ll be careful.” Stiles promises.

“I’m going to lose my mind...” Cora tells him.

“Come on, man” Aiden says.

“Ugh! Alright, fine!” Derek shouts over them. The pack cheers in glee. They grab their winter coats and head outside. Derek sets down his book, throws on his jacket and follows after them. He isn’t going to let anyone out of his sight.

 

Aiden and Ethan sled down the hill in their double snow tube. Allison, Lydia, and Stiles go down in their triple snow tube, laughing and screaming all the way down. Danny and Isaac go down in their individual wooden sleds. Scott and Cora race each other on their snowboards. Derek sits at the top of the hill watching them.

“Yeah, I win!!!” Scott shouts. “Woo!”

“Beat you back up to the top!” Cora says.

She gets a head start after unbuckling her snowboard, and shoving Scott down in the snow. Scott unclips his feet, and chases after her. Cora is winning, before Scott dives for her legs, making her faceplant the snow.

“Scott, if you hurt my little sister-” Derek starts to warn. He cuts off when Cora turns over onto her back, laughing. Scott helps her up off the ground.

“LOOK OUT!!!” Stiles, Lydia and Allison scream.

The force makes Scott and Cora drop their snowboards. It knocks them right off their feet. They land in the center, where the giant snow tube connects all three of them.

“OH SHIT!!!” Stiles shouts over everyone’s screams.

Isaac and Danny’s lives flash before their eyes. They land right on top of Scott and Cora’s backs. Luckily, nobody’s hurt by the time the tube comes to a stop. Derek laughs fondly at the idiots from the highest part of the hill. The rest of the pack bursts out in laughter too.

An hour later, Stiles walks up to the top and sits down next to Derek.

“Hey” Stiles says.

“Hey” Derek returns.

“How come you’re not sledding with us?” He asks.

“Stiles,” Derek chuckles. “I’m too old for that stuff.”

“No you’re not,” Stiles tells him. “You’re never too old to have fun.”

Derek looks out at the members of his pack, laughing and screaming as they sled and snowboard together.

“Come on,” Stiles stands up again. “Sled with me.” He tugs on his sleeve. Derek lets out a deep sigh before giving in and getting up.

The wolf is surprised when the boy takes hold of his hand and laces their fingers together. The human drags the werewolf down the snowy hill and leads him to an unused double snow tube. The two plop down in it and kick off down the incline. They mimic the others, laughing and screaming the whole way down.

 

The dull sun starts to set beyond the cloudy horizon. As the wind starts to pick up, bits of snow begin to fall from the gray sky above.

“A blizzard’s supposed to hit tonight,” Derek announces. “Let’s head back inside.”

The pack puts away their gear and goes back inside the cottage. They hang up their winter coats, gloves, boots, hats and scarves to dry and thank Derek for letting them go outside.

The pack takes a seat at the kitchen table. They wait for Derek to finish making them hot chocolate.

“Do we have any marshmallows?” Isaac asks.

“You can’t have hot cocoa without marshmallows” Stiles says. He returns with a bag full of mini marshmallows, cinnamon, a bottle of caramel and maple syrup, peppermint sticks, dark and white chocolate shavings, and a box of ice cream.

“Why do we always have orgies of food?” Lydia asks.

“Food orgies are the best orgies.” Stiles tells her.

Derek carries a tray full of steaming mugs over.

“Ooooo…yes, finally!” Stiles exclaims.

“I’ll be right back.” Derek tells them. He sets the tray down on the table and leaves.

“Ouch! Shit!” Isaac burns his tongue on the first sip. “It’s hot, be careful.”

“Not as hot as me” Stiles says.

Nobody laughs, expect Scott.

Scott adds mini marshmallows to his hot chocolate, Allison puts caramel in hers, Lydia puts maple syrup in, Danny puts in peppermint sticks, Isaac adds cinnamon, Cora adds ice cream, Aiden uses dark chocolate shavings, and Ethan puts in white chocolate shavings. Stiles puts all of the above in his hot cocoa.

Just as Stiles is about to take his first sip of hot chocolate, Derek returns to toss Stiles’ winter coat into his arms.

“Help me grab some firewood before the blizzard hits.” Derek says, already bundled up in his winter gear.

“Why do I have to do it?” Stiles whines.

“Shut up” Derek tells him.

The two go outside, almost forgetting to shut the door behind them. The wind blows the snow in at a rapid pace. The force blows Stiles scarf back behind him, his hat almost flying off.

“So where is this firewood you speak of?” Stiles asks.

“In the shed behind the house” Derek tells him.

They’re forced to walk in three inch deep of snow to get there. Stiles tries to keep up with Derek. He always feels so slow when he’s walking or running with him. The wolf reaches the shed before the human does.

Derek momentarily stops in his tracks in front of the shed.

“Derek?” Stiles says. “Are you alright?”

Derek starts to groan, his ongoing voice an otherworldly sound. His spine crunches forward unnaturally, manipulating him to get down on all fours. His two arms grow the exact same length as his legs. Four bumps rouse along his back, stirring visibly against his clothing. Two extra pairs of arms and legs burst out of his skin and rip straight through his clothes. His extra limbs shape and curve around his body. Its real flesh shreds through his light skin like a disguise. It has shiny black coat with a white stripe running down its abdomen. It turns around to look at him with its eight round black beady eyes – the true form of a giant spider.

“O-O-Oh my God” Stiles cautiously backs away. He’s terrified if he moves too fast it’ll attack him. “Holy shit…what the fuck…” He mutters softly.  It’s long, gleaming black limbs scuttle towards him slowly. His foot gets caught on a fallen tree branch behind him. He trips backward onto the snow covered ground. 

The giant spider lunges at him, catching him instantly. It uses the pointed tips on its front two legs to grasp him tightly. He tries hard to squirm out and escape but it’s too strong. He’s able to let out a loud piercing cry before the monster sinks its fangs deep into his shoulder.

Poisonous venom seeps out its ducts and straight into his system. Within seconds, it paralyzes his entire body, making him unable to scream for help. It’s difficult to breathe, especially when the spider starts to roll Stiles’ entire body up in silk, ensuring he can’t get away. The giant spider scurries into the forest, carrying its woven prey between its legs.

The last thing Stiles hears is Derek’s distant voice screaming out his name.

 

Derek returns to the kitchen where the pack sits drinking their hot chocolate.

“Where’s Stiles?” Derek asks.

“With…you…?” Scott replies.

“To get firewood” Isaac adds.

Everyone’s eyes widen simultaneously. Derek is the first to run outside in the blizzard.

“STILES!!!” His voice echoes the night.

The pack races to get to the shed behind the cottage. Their hearts pound rapidly against their chests, the pace of their breathing hastening by the second. They’re terrified for Stiles.

They reach the shed.

“How the hell did this happen?” Derek yells at them. “Couldn’t you smell that it wasn’t me? What the fuck!”

           

Derek stops the pack after several hours spent in the cold blizzard, searching for him. “Go back and get some rest,” He orders, still angry at them. “Be careful and stay together.”

The pack seems hesitate about the instruction. They’re still concerned about Stiles’ whereabouts. Everyone starts to head back towards the cottage, except Scott.

Scott looks straight at Derek. There’s a heart-wrenching sadness in his eyes. He’s never seen him so scared for Stiles before.

“No, I’m going with you.” Scott says.

“Scott” Derek argues.

“Derek” Scott says.

“…Fine.” Derek agrees.

They can’t find footprints anywhere. Scott and Derek would recognize it in a heartbeat if there were any trance of his scent. Derek’s never gone this deep into the woods before. Not even as a child he’d play out this far with his siblings and cousins. The werewolf’s voice is almost raw from yelling out the boy’s name so many times. Derek doesn’t know how he can go on if they never find him.

Ever since the Hale fire happened, he’s had a hole in his chest. One that he thought he could never heal. The moment he met Stiles, it started to mend. As he got to know him better, it was like Stiles was picking up all of the pieces of him, and putting it back together. It’s like he was sealing the gaping hole in his chest, healing it. And now that he’s gone, it’s opened up again.

“Lydia says if we stay out here any longer we’ll die from exposure before we find Stiles.” Scott says after looking at his phone.

They hesitate for a long moment, looking out into the deep woods.

“Okay.” Derek eventually says.

They’re forced to turn around and head back to the cottage.

 

The next time Stiles wakes up, the edges of his vision are blurry. Everything seems to spin. With venom still flowing through his system, he remains immobile. He’s strung up against the wall, his entire body wrapped in a white cocoon. The only part of his body that isn’t covered is his face. It takes minutes for his vision to finally clear. He sees a giant spider standing before him. The creature secures him up against the wall like it did to its other victims.

 

 

 


	5. Green

The entire room is covered in the same material a spider would use to spin a web. Stiles notices four bodies strung up in silk on the opposite wall. Another person must’ve gone missing recently. The giant spider had used its deadly venom to liquefy their insides, and then drink them out to death like soup. The worst part is they had been alive during it.

 _Why the fuck does this always happen to me?_ Stiles thinks. _Of course it’d be me to get kidnapped by a fugly spider monster._

The spider sees the boy wide awake. It stops weaving. The disturbing crunching of the spider’s exoskeleton collapsing into the appearance of Derek unsettles Stiles to the extreme.

“I’m going to eat you and your boyfriend very soon,” It reaches out to caress Stiles’ cheek. “Once I capture him.”

            _What boyfriend?_ Being paralyzed keeps Stiles from asking so.

 “I’ve never eaten a gay couple before,” It tells him in an unlike Derek manner. “I’ve heard they taste wonderful, and that they’ll benefit my power more, compared to straight couples.” Stiles becomes more and more confused. “It’s too bad you can’t talk. I’ve been wondering how long Derek and you have been together.”

            _Uh, never_ …? Stiles wishes to correct.

            Stiles realizes that he’s researched this creature before. He can’t think of the name at the top of his head but he knows a little bit about them. They’re a type of shapeshifter that will stalk and study their victims’ behavior to trick and lure them. It prefers to eat people who are in a relationship with each other. The love between two people gives them incredible power, strength, and well, dinner.

            “At first, I wasn’t positive you were a couple or not,” It explains. “So I lured you out onto the frozen lake and put you two to the test. Derek sacrificed himself, carried you all the way back to the cottage, and shared his body heat to save you. Both of you showed all of the indications that you were in love with each other. Plus snuggling with Derek in bed while there were other people with you, really confirmed it” The creature pauses. “Oh and especially when you asked him to go sledding with you – the holding hands with him really did it too.”

            _Derek’s in love with…me?_   Stiles’ heart leaps out of his chest, butterflies stirring in his stomach. Sure he’s wrong about them being together, but the monster believes Derek feels the same way Stiles does.

             The creature disguised as Derek shifts into Stiles.

“Well I better go grab your boyfriend,” It says. “I’ll be right back.”

 

            Derek sends the pack straight to bed. They plan on searching again first thing after the blizzard ends. They’ll need to rest in the meantime. Once he’s finished locking up the house, the werewolf even tries to get some rest himself.

            Derek can’t sleep. Not with all the scary thoughts clouding his head. Stiles could be hurt or dead for all he knows. He can’t stop picturing Stiles out in the blizzard, lost and all alone. He leans against the back of a tree, hugging his knees to his chest. He’s painfully freezing to death as he waits for someone to find him. He doesn’t want to consider the terrifying possibility of never finding him, and never seeing him again. The werewolf rolls over on his stomach and buries his face into the covers. After the hyperthermia incident, Stiles’ scent remains in the bed sheets. He closes his eyes and breathes his scent in. It’s so distinct he almost believes that Stiles is here, lying beside him. His wolf and human let out a longing whimper for the boy.

Derek gets up out of bed, walks out of his room, down the hall and goes downstairs. He browses the old, ancient books kept on a dusty bookshelf in the corner. He’s so concentrated on finding Stiles that he’s completely forgotten to research what could’ve taken him. One of these books may be able to tell him where the shapeshifter prefers to live in. Maybe he could pinpoint it from there. Suddenly he hears a quiet knock. He looks over at the sliding glass door to see Stiles standing outside in the menacing blizzard. Derek’s heart seems to leap out of chest in relief. He hurries over to unlock the door, heave it open and close for him.

Derek pulls Stiles in a tight embrace, to make sure it’s real. Stiles looks real. He tightens his grasp on him. He feels real. He buries his face into his neck. His scent seems a bit off. It doesn’t matter though as long as Stiles is here with him.

 Stiles’ arms remain at his sides for a long moment. He hesitates before enfolding his arms around him.

“I thought you were dead.” Derek tells him in a soft, shaky voice.

“The monster, it’s some kind of shapeshifter,” Stiles tells him. Derek puts distance between them to look and listen to him. His hands shift to wrap securely around his triceps.  “It tricked me into thinking it was you. And then it took me its nest,” He cringes. “It feeds off of couples, and we’re next on the menu.”

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Derek furrows his eyebrows. “We’re not together.”

“What?” Stiles says.

“We’re not even really friends.” Derek tells him.

“Well, that’s just not true.” Stiles argues.

“That doesn’t make sense,” He repeats. “Who are you?”

“Aw, shit.” The shapeshifter sighs.

Derek’s face turns threatening. He grabs hold of his coat collar and shoves him back into a wall. “Where’s Stiles?!” He shouts.

“Woah” The creature shudders. “Easy there, pal”

“Where is he?!!” Derek roars.

The pack hears the loud commotion and runs downstairs in their pajamas. Their faces light up the room happily when they see the creature disguised as Stiles.

“Stiles” Scott glares at Derek.

“It’s not Stiles!” Derek tells him. “It’s a shapeshifter; he’s trying to trick us.” He explains quickly. “Now tell me where Stiles is!!!” Derek pulls him off the wall and slams him back into it again.

“Okay! Okay! I’ll tell you!” It yells. “He’s being kept inside an abandoned house near the Oakton ski resort.” According to its steady heartbeat it isn’t lying. The creature gives Derek a firm glare. “But if you dare lay a hand on my spiderlings, I’ll use your pack as fertilizer for my next set.” Its eyes flash a sinister green.

            “What are you?” Isaac’s eyebrows furrow.

“I don’t care. We need to find Stiles,” Derek interrupts. “You three come with me,” He points to Scott, Isaac and Allison. “The rest of you stay here,” He drags the creature wearing Stiles’ face off of the wall, and heaves the trickster over to the others to restrain. “Make sure it doesn’t get away.”

 

“We’ll make it there faster if we travel on foot,” Derek states. “The weather will just slow the car down.”  The blizzard seems to be getting drastically worse by the hour, so the four of them put on heavier, warmer gear than they usually do, preparing for the worst.

“I think Stiles has mentioned a shapeshifter like this before” Isaac remembers.

“True forms can be just about anything you can come up with,” Allison mentions. “I’ve read things online about them.”

“If it has spiderlings than its true form must be a spider.” Scott concludes.

They follow Derek inside the garage.

“How are we going to deal with the offspring then?” Isaac asks.

            Derek hands out three jugs of gasoline to each of them.

 

            “By blowing them up” Derek says. He had grabbed a lighter on their way out of the house.

            “We’re getting Stiles out of there first, right?” Scott asks.

            “No, we’re going to burn him alive too, you idiot.” Derek sarcastically says. Derek checks one of their old, dusty flashlight works before giving it to Allison. She doesn’t have werewolf night vision like the others do. 

            “I hope they haven’t hatched.” Allison prays.

            “They’ve probably hatched already,” Derek says. “Spiders usually stay inside the egg sac until they’re developed enough to leave it.”

           

            The harsh winds try to knock them off their course. The four never stop along the way. Their driven motivation to find their pack members is eternal.  When they reach the Oakton Ski Resort, they use it as the main key to finding their friend. Scott, Isaac, Allison and Derek frantically search the area until they stumble across an uninhibited house. The old building sits in a large clearing. It’s an eerie, gray two story home with a busted chimney. As time goes on, the wood it’s made out of slowly decays. Parts of the roof and the porch are beaten in.

            They head up the porch’s steps and go in the house together. The house has broken furniture and shards of glass scattered about on the floor in each room. Allison takes out the flashlight Derek gave her and switches it on. Three sets of eyes illuminate in the darkness: Scott’s true red, Derek’s icy blue and Isaac’s golden yellow. Their senses rouse to life, trying to find them. The werewolves of the group hear Stiles’ heartbeat rouse from below them. They follow the sound and meet a dusty stairway to the basement.

They go down the stairs to find the walls, ceilings and floors are covered in its webs. The spider silk sticks to the bottom of their shoes, threads and threads peeling off under them.  A sickly odor leads them to four victims strung up against the wall, wrapped up in the same material. It’s the smell of their organs liquefied and drank out of.  

The werewolf frantically scans the rest of room, searching for his human. He’s the first to spot another figure, strung up on the opposite wall across from the murdered victims.

 “Stiles!!!” Derek shouts when he sees him. This catches Scott and Isaac’s attention. Allison takes a moment to shine her flashlight on the figure.

“Oh my God,” She whispers.

Derek is the first to reach Stiles, the others following closely behind him. The wolf takes the unconscious boy’s face into his hands.

“Thank God,” Scott states. “I think he’s alright.”

Derek begins to remove the twine embracing him to the wall. “Scott, help me get this shit off of him.” Derek demands. “You two search the house and try to find the egg sac,” Derek orders. “But whatever you do, don’t touch it.”

Scott immediately joins in on helping him tear off the silky cocoon he’s wrapped up in. Allison and Isaac investigate the rest of the basement together. When they don’t find anything they head upstairs to continue their search.

Derek holds Stiles’ limp body up, keeping him from falling over. As long as Stiles isn’t glued to the wall anymore, they don’t bother brushing off the few threads left on him

“Uh…I think we found it.” Isaac says from the floor above.

“Wow, that was fast,” Scott says. “Where are you?”

“We’re in the dining room,” Isaac states. “The next room over from the living room”

“I’ll carry him.” Derek throws Stiles over his shoulder.  
            “I can take that for you.” Scott offers. He points to his jug of gasoline Derek’s still managing to carry. Scott takes it with his free hand, now carrying two of them.

“Thank you.” Derek says, now able to get a better grip on Stiles’ legs.

 “We’re on our way” Scott talks to Isaac as they head up the stairs.

 

“Over here.” Isaac tries to guide them using his voice. Scott and Derek scurry through the living room into the dining room.

They spot them standing on the side of the staircase.

“It’s in here.” Allison says. She points her shaky finger into the open cupboard.

A giant yellowish-white egg sac lies fastened to the ceiling of closet. It’ll twitch and make a rustling sound every few seconds.

“Derek was right,” Allison says. “They’ve already hatched but are still developing inside the sac.”

“That is the most disgusting thing I’ve ever seen.” Scott comments.

“I think I’m going to be sick.” Isaac gags.

“What are you waiting for?” Derek rolls his eyes. “Scott leave my jug here and start spreading the gasoline.” They scatter throughout the house with their jugs of gasoline. They quickly trailing on the floors and walls as they go.

The three meet up and return to Derek. They’re ready to blow up the house, kill the spiderlings, and get the hell out of here.

Derek reaches into his pocket with one hand, the other clutches Stiles’ legs. He pulls out his lighter and tosses it to Scott.

“Isaac, pick up my leftover gasoline,” Derek orders. “Put some of it on the walls and on the floor beneath the egg sac.” Isaac does as he told and hurls some onto the walls and floor around the area.

“Okay, you still got a lot left, right?” Derek asks. Isaac nods his head at him. “Okay, listen to me very carefully. Scott, be ready to set it on fire. Isaac, I want you to pour the rest of it onto the egg sac.”

“What?” Isaac’s eyes widen in horror.

“Just do it!” Derek yells. “Scott, you better be fucking ready! Because those fuckers aren’t going to be happy with us! They’re going to try and eat the first thing they see.”

Scott flicks on the lighter and waits with the others.

“One…two…” Isaac nervously says. “…THREE!” And then drenches it in gasoline.

The egg sac aggressively stirs in place, the spiderlings screeching within. Scott lights it on fire before they start hatching out of it. The screeching grows louder as it bursts into flames.

The fire grows bigger and bigger. Derek tightens his grip around Stiles’ legs as the four of them break out into a run. The scorching flames chase them down as they race out of the house. The windy blizzard and snow covered ground slow them down. They make it far enough away before there’s a huge blast sounds behind them. The four of them drop down into the snow. The noise wakes up Stiles with a scream, his limbs flailing about. “What the fuck is going on?!”

 The four of them drop down into the snow to cover their heads. Scott cradles Allison and Isaac’s heads, protectively. Derek slides Stiles off of his shoulder onto the ground. He gets down on top of Stiles, using his entire body as a shield. Stiles tries to peek over Derek’s shoulder. The wolf pushes his human back down into the snow, not trusting its safe yet.  Derek glances over his shoulder to check. It seems to be.

The boy’s heart quicken, skipping a beat when their eyes connect. Stiles blushes intensely, he knows the werewolf can sense it. The alarmed look on Derek’s face changes into profound affection for him. Stiles gazes down at Derek’s lips briefly before looking back up into his eyes. Butterflies stir after he finds Derek looking at his lips as well.

“Are you alright?” Derek asks.

“Yeah” He lies. “Are you guys alright?”

“Yeah” Derek tells him, noticing a change in him.

After the shapeshifter left him, Stiles frantically tried to move and escape, hoping the paralysis would wear off. The fluid in his veins was too strong. He had never been more terrified for his friends. After several hours of no progress, he cried himself to sleep.

            “Let’s get out of here.” Scott says. He helps Allison and Isaac up off the ground, and Derek does the same for Stiles.


	6. Heart

The blizzard’s come to an end by the time Scott, Allison, Isaac, Derek and Stiles return to the cottage. When they do, they see smoke rising from the backyard. There's a giant bonfire there, the rest of their gang surrounding it.

“Thank God!” Cora shouts. She rushes over to throw her arms around the back of Stiles’ neck and hugs him. Lydia, Danny, Ethan and Aiden all line up behind her.

“We missed you!” Lydia is next in line to hug him, then Danny.

“Are you alright?” Danny asks. Stiles nods at him. It’s Ethan's turn after.

“Are you sure?” Ethan asks. Stiles nods again.

“You scared the shit out of us.” Aiden doesn't hug him but gives him a slap on the back.

“What happened?” Derek asks. He sees the carcass of a giant spider scorching behind them.

“Holy shit” Isaac comments.

“It transformed, and tried to eat Ethan and Danny,” Cora tells him. “So we killed it.”

“Um, wow, okay then” Scott says.

Everyone’s surprised to see that Stiles isn’t disgusted and squirmy about it like he usually would be. Instead, he stares into the blazing fire, mortified by the trickster. The pack crowds around Stiles some more. It becomes too overwhelming for him soon after they start asking questions.

“Okay, okay, that’s enough,” Derek squeezes past them to get to Stiles. “Give him some damn space.” Derek wraps an arm around Stiles. “Come on, let’s get you inside.” He leads him inside the cottage and upstairs to Stiles’ bedroom.

“I’m going to take a shower.” Stiles states and goes into the bathroom.

“I’ll be here when you get out.” Derek declares.

 Stiles seems to loosen up, relieved by his words before he shuts the door.

 

It’s been over hour. Derek can hear Stiles start to sob as the shower runs. For long while, he argues with himself on what to do. Eventually he gets up out of the desk chair and knocks on the door.

“Hey Stiles,” Derek says. “Are you alright?”

There’s no response, only the sound of sniffling.

Derek hesitates for a long moment. “Can…I come in?” He asks.

There’s a pause between them.

“…Yeah,” Stiles consents.

Derek opens the bathroom door and reluctantly walks in.

He shuts the door behind him, puts down the toilet lid and sits down on it, hunched over, his elbows resting on his knees. Across from him is the shower, its curtain closed.

“I’m here to listen,” Derek offers. “If you want to talk”

“…I hate spiders” Stiles sniffles.

“Yeah,” Derek says. “Laura used to hate them too. I’d always...have to kill them for her.” He grins a little at the memories of her.

“I was so worried about you guys,” Stiles proclaims. “I haven’t been that scared since…since my mom was sick.” Derek can hear his heartbeat quicken and his breathing start to hitch. “I c-can’t breathe….” Stiles pants rapidly. Derek quickly stands up. “I-I t-t-think I’m having a p-p-panic attack-k.” Derek used to have them all the time after the Hale fire. Laura would always be the one to calm him down. “D-D-Derek…h-h-help-p”

The werewolf walks across the room and yanks open the curtain. He finds the boy sitting in the corner, hugging his knees to his chest. The shower head’s aimed at him, soaking him in water. Derek quickly reaches out and turns off the water. He crouches down to the human’s level and opens his arms up to him. Stiles hesitates before taking the comfort he offers, he moves in towards him, and wraps his arms around the back of his neck. He draws Derek halfway into the tub with him, burying his face into his shoulder and clutching onto his leather jacket for dear life.

“It’s okay,” Derek embraces him back. “You’re safe now, and so is the rest of the pack.”

“I-I can’t b-b-breathe, D-Derek” Stiles pants for air.

“Yes you can,” Derek tells him. “Breathe with me,” He rubs his back in soothingly circles. “Inhale…exhale…inhale…exhale”

 

It takes Stiles a while to calm down and match Derek’s breathing fully. He isn’t panicking anymore but the speed of his heart doesn’t seem to lessen, because Derek’s here, close to him, touching him. He continues to cry for a little while afterwards, eventually falling asleep in his arms.

The werewolf scoops up the boy and carries him out to his bed to set him down on. He wraps him up in blankets and makes a nest of pillows for his head.

As he turns away to go sit back in the desk chair, he feels a gentle tug on his sleeve.

“Derek,” Stiles wakes up. “Please don’t leave me.”

The desk chair is close to the door, the exit. Stiles is mistaken.

“I wasn't going to,” Derek softly murmurs. "I won't leave you. I promise.” He slips off his shoes and let’s his leather jacket drop to the floor.

Stiles grabs hold of his arm again, and draws Derek onto the bed with him. The werewolf leans his back against the headboard in a sitting up position, his body turned slightly to face the boy.

“Derek,” Stiles utters. “Will you hold me?”

The werewolf nods at him before opening his arms and pulling the boy into his side. Stiles wraps an arm around his stomach, the other curled in between them. He can hear the boy’s heart picking up. It skips a beat when Derek kisses the top of Stiles’ head.

The boy looks up to meet his eyes, and then they slowly drift down to gaze at the wolf’s lips.

“Derek,” Stiles whispers. “Will you kiss me?” Derek hesitates before rubbing his thumbs gently against Stiles' cheeks, getting lost in his face. Stiles closes his eyes and waits for him patiently.

Derek closes the distance between their lips, kissing him tenderly and gentle. Stiles kisses back. Both cherish the seconds.

“Get some sleep,” Derek says. He hates to seperate their lips from each others but his mate needs to rest. The wolf pulls boy as close as possible, both tighten their grip on each other. “Everything’s going to be fine.”

“I know” Stiles' lips curl up into a smile.

They fall asleep.  
  
  
 _The End._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading this! I hope you enjoyed!!! :)

**Author's Note:**

> Updated every Monday night.


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